Attention, workaholics: Twelve hours on the job may go against Mother Nature.
Don't fight that 5 p.m. whistle. New research from the University of Pennsylvania and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies suggests that humans are biologically hard-wired to work only eight hours a day.
The standard work cycle appears to be programmed in the genes.
"There is the possibility that there could be a biological basis to an eight-hour cycle," said senior author John Hogenesch, an associate professor of pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania.
His research team focused on the "circadian clock" that coordinates human physiological and behavioral processes on a 24-hour rhythm. People anticipate changes in their environment and prepare accordingly. In the course of a day and night, thousands of genes are affected - switching on and reacting to outside stimulus with predictable regularity.
Previous research has concentrated on the 12-hour cycles governed by light and dark, which set our regular waking and sleeping hours and eating habits. When the timely inner routine gets disrupted, the body can suffer from jet lag - or worse. A compromised clock has also been linked to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, cancer and aging-related disorders. More here.
Washington Times
once again scientists spend their time doing nothing and jump to stupid conclusions. People are not "hard wired" to work 8 hours a day. That's just dumb. SOME people have been CONDITIONED to the standard work cycle. Plus there are the obvious common sense limitations such as night and day.
ReplyDeleteI've been working 100 hour weeks for nearly 40 years. I do my best work in the middle of the night (fewer interruptions, distractions,...).
ReplyDeleteThat works for me...
As for the pharmacologists: They can't even explain how anesthesia works.
Hey leave the workaholics alone how about you do a study and direct it to the people on welware tell them THEY need to work 8 hours a day
ReplyDeleteI'd just like to find the SOB who decided that we work 5 days a week and have off 2 instead of the other way around...lol
ReplyDelete